IRONSAND TESTS

Press, Volume C, Issue 29682, 28 November 1961, Page 18

IRONSAND TESTS

Explanation By Mr Fisher (N.Z. Press Association) AUCKLAND, November 27. Separation of ironsand concentrate for testing overseas had been completed, said the chairman of the New Zealand Steel Investigating Company (Mr W. Fislier) in a statement today. The last of three shipments of ironsand concentrate would leave Auckland at the end of this week, he said, and it was hoped that the series of tests would begin about the middle of February and end in April. Mr Fisher said that the sand used to produce the concentrate was obtained from the Hamilton’s Gap, a beach on the west coast about 18 miles north of Waiuku. The deposit there was a small one which had approximately 85 per cent, titanomagnetdte. The percentage of titanomagnetite at Hamilton’s Gap was much higher than in the larger deposits which would be used for an iron and steel industry. However, when processed, the sand produced a concentrate with the same characteristics as the concentrate from the larger deposits Mr Fisher said he wanted to clarify this point because from some reports it could have appeared that the main deposits contained as much as 85 per cent, titanomagnetite, wheras the percentage was considerably lower. This was not a matter of great concern as the cost of mining and separating it was a relatively minor factor in the costs of iron and steel production.